Page:History of Greece Vol IV.djvu/209

DEFEAT OF CRCESUS BY CYKUS. 19] rorably entertained, the more so, as he had before gratuitoualj furnished some gold to the Lacedaemonians, for a statue to Apollo The alliance now formed was altogether general, no express eftori being as yet demanded from them, though it soon came to be. But the incident is to be noted, as marking the first plunge of the leading Grecian state into Asiatic politics ; and that too without any of the generous Hellenic sympathy which afterwards induced Athens to send her citizens across the ^Egean. Croesus was the master and tribute-exactor of the Asiatic Greeks, and their contingents seem to have formed part of his army for the expedition now contemplated ; which army consisted principally, not of native Lydians, but of foreigners. The river Halys formed the boundary at this time between the Median and Lydian empires : and Croesus, marching across that, river into the territory of the Syrians or Assyrians of Kap- padokia, took the city of Pteria and many of its surrounding dependencies, inflicting damage and destruction upon these dis- tant subjects of Ekbatana. Cyrus lost no time in bringing an army to their defence considerably larger than that of Croesus, and at the same time tried, though unsuccessfully, to prevail on the lonians to revolt from him. A bloody battle took place be- tween the two armies, but with indecisive result : and Croesus, seeing that he could not hope to accomplish more with his forces as they stood, thought it wise to return to his capital, in order to collect a larger army for the next campaign. Immediately on reaching Sardis, he despatched envoys to Labynetus king of Babylon ; to Amasis king of Egypt ; to the Lacedremoninns, and to other allies ; calling upon all of them to send auxiliaries to Sardis during the course of the fifth coming month. In the mean time, he dismissed all the foreign troops who had followed him into Kappadokia. 1 Had these allies appeared, the war might perhaps have been prosecuted with success ; and on the part of the Lacedaemonians at least, there was no tardiness ; for their ships were ready and their troops almost on board, when the unexpected news reached them that Croesus was already ruined.' 2 Cyrus had foreseen and forestalled the defensive plan of his enemy. He pushed on with 1 Herodot. i, 77. a Hewlot. L R3.